The following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
A valve is a device that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Many kinds of valves are known in the art, depending on the kind of flow control to be performed, the kind of fluid they are to control, and/or other diverse technical factors.
Bypass valves, in particular, are valves that allow fluid to normally pass through one or more ports, and that open to direct fluid in an alternate direction after a set temperature, pressure, or voltage limit is reached. When the predetermined unit is exceeded, bypass valves allow the fluid to flow through a bypass port in the alternate direction. In this manner, bypass valves allow regulating parameters of a fluid.
An example of use of bypass valves is found in internal combustion engine cooling systems, whose purpose is to cool down a coolant fluid after the fluid has been in turn used to cool down the internal combustion engine and has thus become heated. Generally, the coolant fluid is cooled in a heat exchange system in which the engine coolant flows through a radiator; the engine coolant exchanges heat with cooler air adjacent to the radiator, and thus becomes cooled. However, in the event that the coolant fluid is not hot enough, a bypass valve bypasses the coolant fluid flow coming from the engine so that it flows back to the engine instead of to the heat exchange system; when coolant fluid is heated over a predefined threshold temperature, the bypass valve switches so that the coolant fluid is directed towards the heat exchange system. Fluid flow switching inside the bypass valve is carried out by a movable barrier assembly that is capable of opening and closing a bypass port communicating the different ports through which fluid flows to and from the heat exchange system. Even though bypass valves are very useful for internal combustion engine cooling systems and other applicable systems, they are not free of certain drawbacks. For example, bypass valves are known to create pressure drops in the fluid flowing from the engine towards the heat exchange system, and/or in the opposite direction.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for a bypass valve that provides a constant pressure of the fluid entering and exiting the valve while maintaining reasonably compact external dimensions.